CONCORD, N.C. — Defending Sprint Cup champion Brad Keselowski, summoned to a meeting Friday with NASCAR chairman Brian France and vice chairwoman Lesa France Kennedy, said Tuesday that he will accept the role as NASCAR’s “bad guy” and won’t hesitate to provide strong opinions on the sport.

The meeting Friday came on the heels of a USA Today interview where Keselowski said that NASCAR is too splintered, that the sanctioning body does not work well with the teams or tracks and that the business model needed to be changed.

Keselowski was not fined for his comments, and NASCAR Vice President Brett Jewkes said that the meeting was to give Keselowski more information on the issues he’s concerned about.

In talking about his outspokenness Tuesday following an announcement for the Sprint All-Star Race, Keselowski said he is not going to run away from his opinions.

“First and foremost, if I have to be the bad guy in this garage or in this sport, so that the series and American motorsports can move forward, that doesn’t bother me one bit,” Keselowski said.

In his criticism of the sport, Keselowski said that NASCAR doesn’t work well together with the various entities.

“(Bill) France Jr. had relationships with the sponsors, drivers and teams,” Keselowski told USA Today. “Now we don't have that. Those three other pieces are segregated. Those three pieces need to get together. And until all three of those can unite, we're a house divided, and we're making bad decisions that are affecting how to generate revenue for the sport.”

Keselowski also said the sport was not “TV-friendly.”

“In today's sports world, you have to be very powerful in drawing people to TV, and we're not TV-friendly,” he said. “That's one of the key areas for success. Part of that is we're not delivering a product. And we're fighting the tracks.”

The 29-year-old Keselowski, who won his first Sprint Cup championship last year, said that he would continue to say what he feels and believes while also understanding the negative impact it could have.

“I will still have the same approach to doing everything I can to push the sport forward as I see fit,” said Keselowski, who has developed a broad platform due to his outgoing personality and his new role as Sprint Cup champion.

“It’s just a matter of balancing it with the interest of everything else. … I would rather be maybe a less popular champion of a series that’s very, very successful, than a popular champion of a series that’s not.”